Paging method, base station and user equipment

ABSTRACT

A paging method, a base station and a UE are provided. The paging method includes: receiving, by a UE in an inactive state, a paging message for determining a paging type, the paging message being transmitted from a base station, the paging type including an access network paging initiated by an access network or a core network paging initiated by a core network; determining, by the UE, the paging type corresponding to the paging message; and when the paging type corresponding to the paging message is the core network paging, updating, by the UE, each of states of a NAS and a RRC layer for the UE into an idle state, and responding to, by the UE, the paging message.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims the benefit of and is a continuation ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/345,538 filed on Apr. 26, 2019,which is the U.S. national phase of PCT Application No.PCT/CN2017/109060 filed on Nov. 2, 2017, which claims priority to theChinese patent application No. 201610955201.6 filed on Nov. 3, 2016, thedisclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to the field of wireless communicationtechnology, in particular to a paging method, a base station and a UserEquipment (UE).

BACKGROUND

A plurality of UE states has been defined in a Long Term Evolution (LTE)system, e.g., a Radio Resource Control (RRC) idle state (RRC_IDLE), anRRC connected state (RRC_CONNECTED) and a light connection state. Alongwith the development of the wireless communication system, more types ofUEs and more types of services have emerged, and the reduction of powerconsumption of the UE and saving of network resources may coexist withthe satisfaction of the requirements on various services types.Behaviors capable of being executed by the UE in various states will bedescribed hereinafter.

1. The behaviors capable of being executed by the UE in the RRC_IDLEstate may include: the selection of Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN);the configuration of Discontinuous Reception (DRX) via a Non-AccessStratum (NAS); the broadcasting of system information; paging; themobility in a cell reselection mode; the allocation of a uniqueidentifier for the UE in a certain Tracking Area (TA); UE context beingnot stored in an evolved Node B (eNB); the transmission and reception ofsidelink communication data (Device-to-Device (D2D) communication); andthe notification and monitoring of sidelink discovery (D2D discovery).

2. The behaviors capable of being executed by the UE in theRRC_CONNECTED state may include: that there is an Evolved UniversalMobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network(E-UTRAN)-RRC connection for the UE; that there is the UE context at anE-UTRAN side; that the E-UTRAN is aware of a cell to which the UEbelongs and allocates a Cell-Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI)for the UE; that the data is capable of being transmitted and receivedbetween a network and the UE in accordance with the C-RNTI; the mobilitycontrolled by the network; the measurement of a neighboring cell; thetransmission and reception of sidelink communication data (D2Dcommunication); the notification and monitoring of sidelink discovery(D2D discovery); Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP)/Radio LinkControl (RLC)/Media Access Control (MAC) layer; the transmission andreception of data between the UE and the network; that the UE monitors acontrol signaling channel related to a shared data channel so as tocheck whether data is transmitted on the shared data channel allocatedfor the UE; that the UE reports channel quality information and feedbackinformation to the eNB; and that a DRX period is controlled by the eNBand configured by the eNB in accordance with an activity level ofpower-saving of the UE and the resource utilization.

State transition supported in the LTE system includes transition fromthe RRC_IDLE state to the RRC_CONNECTED state (at this time, it isnecessary for the UE to initiate an access or reestablishment process),and transition from the RRC_CONNECTED state to the RRC_IDLE statethrough a release process.

In order to ensure the reduction of the power consumption of the UE andthe rapid data transmission for the UE, currently a new UE state, i.e.,an inactive state, has been introduced. In this state, the connectionbetween the UE and a core network is maintained. However, the UE isincapable of performing conventional operation in an air-interfaceconnected state (e.g., switching, updating of uplink timing, and radiolink monitoring), and no UE Identifier (ID) for the air-interfacetransmission (e.g., the C-RNTI) is allocated for the UE, so it isimpossible for the UE to perform any air-interface scheduling operation.In addition, in the inactive state, the UE needs to monitor a pagingmessage, so as to receive a call from a network side. There are thefollowing characteristics for the inactive state. The core networkconsiders that the UE is in a connected state. The mobility managementis performed by the UE in a Radio Access Network (RAN) TA pre-configuredat a network side through a cell reselection process rather than ahandover process. A unique user ID has been allocated for the UE in theRAN TA pre-configured at the network side.

In the inactive state, a valid RAN ID in a certain area is allocated bythe network side for the UE, so as to identify the UE in the inactivestate. When the network side searches for the UE or the UE initiates anuplink access process, the UE may enter the connected state through theRAN ID. This ID may also be called as an inactive UE ID or a resume UEID. Different from a globally unique International Mobile SubscriberIdentity (IMSI) or the C-RNTI, the inactive UE ID may have a lengthbetween lengths of the IMSI and the C-RNTI (e.g., the inactive UE ID hasa length of 40 bits, and the C-RNTI has a length of 16 bits). Inaddition, the inactive UE ID may merely be valid in a certain areaincluding a plurality of cells or base stations (eNBs). When the UE hasmoved beyond this area, it is necessary for the UE to update theinactive UE ID.

When the UE is in the inactive state, there is no connection between theUE and the base station, but the UE is capable of receiving a pagingmessage and initiating a service, so it is able to save electricquantity of the UE. In the inactive state, the UE monitors the pagingmessage in accordance with a paging period for the inactive state, andwhen the UE is in the RRC_IDLE state, the UE monitors the paging messagein accordance with a paging period for the RRC_IDLE state. The pagingperiod for the UE in the inactive state is configured by the basestation, and the paging period for the UE the RRC_IDLE state isconfigured by the core network. A relationship between the two pagingperiods is not defined.

When the network side (including the base station and the core network)has released the context of the UE in the inactive state due to its ownreasons without notifying the UE, or a notification message to betransmitted to the UE has been lost at an air interface, the state ofthe UE may be understood by the UE and the network side differently. Tobe specific, the network side may think that the UE is in the idle state(i.e., an Access Stratum (AS) and the Non-Access Stratum (NAS) are bothin the idle state), an AS of the UE may think that the AS of the UE isin the inactive state, and an NAS of the UE may think that the NAS ofthe UE is in the CONNECTED state. Because the paging period for theinactive state is different from the paging period for the idle state,when the network side initiates a paging process for the core network,it is impossible for the UE to receive the paging message.

Hence, when the UE is in the inactive state, the paging process for theUE may be adversely affected because the state of the UE is understoodby the network side and the UE differently.

SUMMARY

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a paging method, abase station and a UE, so as to prevent the paging process from beingadversely affected due to the state of the UE in the inactive state isunderstood by the network and the UE differently.

In one aspect, the present disclosure provides in some embodiments apaging method, including: receiving, by a UE in an inactive state, apaging message for determining a paging type, the paging message beingtransmitted from a base station, the paging type including an accessnetwork paging initiated by an access network or a core network paginginitiated by a core network; determining, by the UE, the paging typecorresponding to the paging message; and when the paging typecorresponding to the paging message is the core network paging,updating, by the UE, each of states of a NAS and a RRC layer for the UEinto an idle state, and responding to, by the UE, the paging message.

In another aspect, the present disclosure provides in some embodiments apaging method, including: determining, by a base station, a paging typeof a paging for a UE when it is necessary for the base station toinitiate the paging for the UE, the paging type including an accessnetwork paging initiated by an access network or a core network paginginitiated by a core network; and transmitting, by the base station, apaging message for determining the paging type to the UE.

In yet another aspect, the present disclosure provides in someembodiments a UE, including: a reception unit configured to receive apaging message for determining a paging type when the UE is in aninactive state, wherein the paging message is transmitted from a basestation, the paging type includes an access network paging initiated byan access network or a core network paging initiated by a core network;a determination unit configured to determine the paging typecorresponding to the paging message; and a first response unitconfigured to, when the paging type corresponding to the paging messageis the core network paging, update each of states of an NAS and an RRClayer for the UE into an idle state, and respond to the paging message.

In still yet another aspect, the present disclosure provides in someembodiments a base station, including: a determination unit configuredto determine a paging type of a paging for a UE when it is necessary forthe base station to initiate the paging for the UE, wherein the pagingtype includes an access network paging initiated by an access network ora core network paging initiated by a core network; and a transmissionunit configured to transmit a paging message for determining the pagingtype to the UE.

In still yet another aspect, the present disclosure provides in someembodiments a UE, including a processor, a transceiver and a memory. Theprocessor is configured to read a program stored in the memory, so asto: receive a paging message for determining a paging type when the UEis in an inactive state, wherein the paging message is transmitted froma base station, the paging type includes an access network paginginitiated by an access network or a core network paging initiated by acore network; determine the paging type corresponding to the pagingmessage; and when the paging type corresponding to the paging message isthe core network paging, update each of states of an NAS and an RRClayer for the UE into an idle state, and respond to the paging message.The transceiver is configured to receive and transmit data. The memoryis configured to store therein data for the operation of the processor.

In still yet another aspect, the present disclosure provides in someembodiments a base station, including a processor, a transceiver and amemory. The processor is configured to read a program stored in thememory, so as to: determine a paging type of a paging for a UE when itis necessary for the base station to initiate the paging for the UE,wherein the paging type includes an access network paging initiated byan access network or a core network paging initiated by a core network;and transmit a paging message for determining the paging type to the UE.The transceiver is configured to receive and transmit data. The memoryis configured to store therein data for the operation of the processor.

According to the paging method, the UE and the base station in theembodiments of the present disclosure, during the paging process for theUE in the inactive state, as compared with the related art, it is ableto prevent the occurrence of a paging failure for the UE when the stateof the UE is understood by the network and the UE differently, therebyto enable the UE to accurately receive the paging message and improve asuccess rate of the paging process.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing an application scenario for awireless system area management method according to some embodiments ofthe present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing another application scenario for thewireless system area management method according to some embodiments ofthe present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a flow chart of a paging method according to some embodimentsof the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of another paging method according to someembodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing a UE according to some embodiments ofthe present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is another schematic view showing the UE according to someembodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view showing a base station according to someembodiments of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 8 is another schematic view showing the base station according tosome embodiments of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

In order to make the objects, the technical solutions and the advantagesof the present disclosure more apparent, the present disclosure will bedescribed hereinafter in a clear and complete manner in conjunction withthe drawings and embodiments. In the following description, specificdetails of configurations and assemblies are merely provided tofacilitate the understanding of the present disclosure. It should beappreciated that, a person skilled in the art may make furthermodifications and alternations without departing from the spirit of thepresent disclosure. In addition, for clarification and concision, anyknown function and structure will not be described hereinafter.

It should be further appreciated that, such phrases as “one embodiment”and “an embodiment” intend to indicate that the related features,structures or characteristics are contained in at least one embodimentof the present disclosure, rather than necessarily referring to a sameembodiment. In addition, the features, structures or characteristics maybe combined in any embodiment or embodiments in an appropriate manner.

It should be appreciated that, the following serial numbers do not referto the order of the steps. Actually, the order shall be determined inaccordance with functions and internal logic of the steps, but shall notbe construed as limiting the implementation in any form.

In addition, the terms “system” and “network” may be replaced with eachother.

It should be appreciated that, the expression “and/or” is merely used todescribe the relationship between objects, and it includes threerelationships. For example, “A and/or B” may represent that, there isonly A, there are both A and B, and there is only B. Further, the symbol“/” usually refers to “or”.

It should be further appreciated that, the expression “B correspondingto A” means that B is related to A and may be determined in accordancewith A. It should be further appreciated that, in the case that B isdetermined in accordance with A, it means that B may be determined inaccordance with A and/or any other information.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, A UE may be a mobilephone (or cell phone) or any other device capable of transmitting orreceiving a radio signal, including a UE, a Personal Digital Assistant(PDA), a wireless modem, a wireless communication device, a handhelddevice, a laptop computer, a cordless telephone, a Wireless Local Loop(WLL) station, Customer Premise Equipment (CPE) or a mobile smarthotspot capable of converting a mobile signal into a WiFi signal, anintelligent household electrical appliance, or any other device capableof spontaneously communicating with a mobile communication networkwithout manual operation.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the form of the basestation will not be particularly defined, and it may be a macro basestation, a pico base station, a Node B (i.e., a 3^(rd)-Generation (3G)base station), an evolved NodeB (eNB), a femto eNB (or Home eNode B orHome eNB (HeNB)), a relay, an access point, a Remote Radio Unit (RRU), aRemote Radio Head (RRH), or the like. In addition, along with thedevelopment of the 5^(th)-Generation (5G) technology, the base stationmay also be any other functional node, e.g., a Central Unit (CU) or aDistributed Unit (DU). The scheme in the embodiments of the presentdisclosure may be applied to the above scenarios. Radio Access Network(RAN) architecture in an LTE networking scenario in the 5G technologyand a possible networking scenario will be described brieflyhereinafter.

The LTE networking scenario in the 5G technology: a base station+a UE.

FIG. 1 shows a typical LTE architecture. There is a plurality of cellsin a coverage of each base station (eNB), and the UE in a connectedstate may receive data from and transmit data to the cell via an airinterface. The UE in the connected state may be allocated with a uniqueUE ID in the cell, i.e., a C-RNTI. The base stations may communicatewith each other via an X2 interface, and each base station maycommunicate with a core network via an S1 interface.

5G networking scenario: a network side node may include CUs and DUs, anda UE side node may include UEs.

FIG. 2 shows a possible architecture of a coming 5G mobile communicationsystem. The network side node may include CUs and DUs, and each CU maycontrol a plurality of DUs deployed in a certain area. These DUs mayalso be called as Transmission Reception Points (TRPs). Each TRP maycommunicate with the UE via an air interface. Each UE may be served byone or more TRPs simultaneously, so as to perform the data transmission.Here, it is necessary to allocate by the network side a uniqueair-interface ID for each UE (e.g., a C-RNTI or a TRP-RNTI), so as toschedule and transmit the data.

The scheme in the embodiments of the present disclosure may be appliedto the above two types of RAN architecture, or another scenario. Forease of description, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, nodesfor transmitting and receiving radio signaling and data at the networkside, including eNBs in FIG. 1 and CUs/DUs n FIG. 2 (TRPs serving as thenodes), may be collectively called as base station. In addition, the UEunique ID for the transmission for the UE in a connected state may becalled as unique air-interface transmission ID for the UE, i.e., aC-RNTI in a conventional LTE system, and a unique ID of the UE in aninactive state in a certain area may be called as inactive UE ID.

As shown in FIG. 3, the present disclosure provides in some embodimentsa paging method for use at a UE side, which includes the followingsteps.

Step 31: receiving, by a UE in an inactive state, a paging message fordetermining a paging type, the paging message being transmitted from abase station, and the paging type including an access network paginginitiated by an access network or a core network paging initiated by acore network.

Usually, the core network paging is a paging initiated by the corenetwork with respect to the UE in an active state (e.g., anRRC_CONNECTED state), and the access network paging is a paginginitiated by the base station with respect to the UE in the inactivestate. It should be appreciated that, the core network paging also needsto be forwarded by the base station to the UE. In the embodiments of thepresent disclosure, the paging message from the base station may beadopted to determine the paging type corresponding to the pagingmessage. To be specific, the base station may indicate the paging typeexplicitly or implicitly through the paging message.

Step 32: determining, by the UE, the paging type corresponding to thepaging message.

Step 33: when the paging type corresponding to the paging message is thecore network paging, updating, by the UE, each of states of a NAS and aRRC layer for the UE into an idle state, and responding to, by the UE,the paging message.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, through the above steps,when the UE in the inactive state receives the core network paging, theUE in the inactive state may update its own NAS and RRC layer into theidle state, so as to respond to the paging message in accordance with abehavior of the UE defined in the idle state, thereby to prevent thepaging processing from being adversely affected when the state of the UEis understood by the network and the UE differently.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, when the paging typecorresponding to the paging message is the access network paging in Step32, the UE may directly respond to the paging message, and initiate aconnection recovery, establishment or reestablishment process. Forexample, the UE may directly respond to the paging message at the RRClayer, and initiate the connection recovery, establishment orreestablishment process. A subsequent paging responding procedure mayrefer to that mentioned in the related art, and thus will not beparticularly defined herein.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the base station mayindicate the paging type in an explicit or implicit manner. Indicationmodes will be described illustratively hereinafter in some embodimentsof the present disclosure. It should be appreciated that any other modecapable of indicating the paging type for the UE may also be adopted.

1) Explicit Indication

The base station may carry indication information of the paging type inthe paging message. At this time, in Step 32, the UE may determine thepaging type corresponding to the paging message in accordance with theindication information.

For example, the paging type may be indicated through a specific 1-bitvalue of an indication bit. When the value is 0, it means that thepaging type is the access network paging, and when the value is 1, itmeans that the paging type is the core network paging. The UE may readthe value of the indication bit, so as to determine the paging type.

2) Implicit Indication

2.1) The base station may carry a predetermined parameter expressed inpredetermined expression modes in the paging message, and differentexpression modes of the predetermined parameter may correspond todifferent paging types. At this time, in Step 32, the UE may determinethe paging type corresponding to the expression mode of thepredetermined parameter in the paging message, thereby to acquire thepaging type corresponding to the paging message.

For example, the access network paging and the core network paging maybe provided with different UE paging IDs. To be specific, the accessnetwork paging may be provided with an inactive UE ID or a resume ID,while the core network paging may be provided with an S-Temporary MobileStation Identity (S-TMSI) or IMSI. The UE may determine the paging typein accordance with an expression mode of the UE paging ID in the pagingmessage.

2.2) The base station may carry or not carry a first predeterminedparameter in the paging message, and whether the first predeterminedparameter is carried in the paging message may be determined inaccordance with the paging type. At this time, in Step 32, the UE maydetermine the paging type corresponding to the paging message inaccordance with whether the first predetermined parameter is carried inthe paging message.

For example, the core network paging may carry a core network domainparameter, e.g., CN-Domain, so as to identify whether the paging is aPacket Switching (PS) domain paging or a Circuit Switching (CS) domainpaging. The access network paging may not carry the parameter. Upon thereceipt of the paging message, the UE may determine whether the pagingtype is the core network paging or the access network paging inaccordance with whether the core network domain parameter is carried inthe paging message.

In Step 33, when the paging type corresponding to the paging message isthe core network paging, the UE may update each of the states of the NASand the RRC layer for the UE into the idle state, respond to the pagingmessage in the idle state, and execute a corresponding paging respondingbehavior. For example, the UE may update the states of the NAS and theRRC layer in the following modes.

Mode 1: the RRC layer for the UE may update the state of the RRC layerinto the idle state, and notify the NAS to release a connection for theUE. Then, the NAS for the UE may update its state into the idle statetoo in accordance with a notification from the RRC layer. The RRC layerfor the UE may deliver paging content in the paging message to the NAS,and the NAS may receive the paging content and respond thereto.

In mode 1, the RRC layer, as a dominant one, may notify the NAS toupdate its state, and deliver the paging content in the paging messageto the NAS, so as to perform a responding procedure of the pagingmessage in the idle state.

Mode 2: the RRC layer for the UE may deliver the paging content in thepaging message to the NAS, and update the state of the RRC layer intothe idle state. Upon the receipt of the paging content, the NAS for theUE may update its state into the idle state, and respond to the pagingcontent.

In mode 2, upon the receipt of the paging content delivered from the RRClayer, the NAS may update its own state into the idle state, and thenperform the responding procedure of the paging message in the idlestate.

The updating of the state may be achieved through updating acorresponding state of a state machine in the layer. When the statemachine is in different states, the UE may perform the behaviorcorresponding to each state, e.g., respond to the paging message. Thebehaviors may refer to relevant definitions in the known standard, andthus will not be particularly defined herein.

It should be appreciated that, the above updating modes are forillustrative purposes only, and the UE may update the states in anyother modes, which will not be particularly defined herein.

As shown in FIG. 4, the present disclosure further provides in someembodiments a paging method for use at a base station side, whichincludes the following steps.

Step 41: determining, by a base station, a paging type of a paging for aUE when it is necessary for the base station to initiate the paging forthe UE, the paging type including an access network paging initiated byan access network or a core network paging initiated by a core network.

Here, the base station may determine whether the paging type is the corenetwork paging or the access network paging in accordance with aninitiator which has initiated the paging.

Step 42: transmitting, by the base station, a paging message fordetermining the paging type to the UE.

Here, the paging type may be indicated to the UE through the pagingpassage with reference to the above-mentioned explicit or implicitindication mode.

For example, when the explicit indication mode is adopted, theindication information of the paging type may be carried in the pagingmessage. At this time, in Step 42, the base station may transmit thepaging message carrying the indication information of the paging type tothe UE, wherein different expression modes of the predeterminedparameter may correspond to different paging types.

For another example, when the implicit indication mode is adopted, thepredetermined parameter expressed in the predetermined expression modemay be carried in the paging message, and different expression modes ofthe predetermined parameter may correspond to different paging types. Atthis time, in Step 42, the base station may determine the expressionmode of the predetermined parameter in accordance with the paging type,and then transmit the paging message carrying the predeterminedparameter expressed in the predetermined expression mode to the UE.

For yet another example, when the implicit indication mode is adopted,the first predetermined parameter may be carried or not carried in thepaging message, and whether the first predetermined parameter is carriedin the paging message may be determined in accordance with the pagingtype. At this time, in Step 42, the base station may determine whetherthe first predetermined parameter is carried in the paging message inaccordance with the paging type, and then transmit the paging messagecarrying or not carrying the first predetermined parameter to the UE.

It can be seen from above that, according to the embodiments of thepresent disclosure, the base station may indicate the paging type in thepaging message. Upon the receipt of the paging message, the UE in theinactive state may update the states of the NAS and the RRC into theidle state, and then respond to the paging message. As a result, it isable for both a network side and a UE side to complete a paging behaviorof the UE based on a same UE state, thereby to prevent the pagingprocess from being adversely affected when the state of the UE isunderstood by the network and the UE differently.

The base station and the UE for the implementation of the above methodswill be described hereinafter.

As shown in FIG. 5, the present disclosure further provides in someembodiments a UE which includes: a reception unit 51 configured toreceive a paging message for determining a paging type when the UE is inan inactive state, wherein the paging message is transmitted from a basestation, the paging type includes an access network paging initiated byan access network or a core network paging initiated by a core network;a determination unit 52 configured to determine the paging typecorresponding to the paging message; and a first response unit 53configured to, when the paging type corresponding to the paging messageis the core network paging, update each of states of an NAS and an RRClayer for the UE into an idle state, and respond to the paging message.

In a possible embodiment of the present disclosure, the first responseunit 53 may include: a first processing unit located at the RRC layerand configured to update the state of the RRC layer for the UE into theidle state, notify the NAS for the UE to release a connection for theUE, and deliver paging content in the paging message to the NAS; and asecond processing unit located at the NAS and configured to update thestate of the NAS into the idle state in accordance with a notificationfrom the first response unit, receive the paging content delivered fromthe first processing unit, and respond to the paging content.

In a possible embodiment of the present disclosure, the first responseunit 53 may include: a third processing unit located at the RRC layerand configured to deliver the paging content in the paging message tothe NAS, and update the state of the RRC layer into the idle state; anda fourth processing unit located at the NAS and configured to, upon thereceipt of the paging content delivered from the third processing unit,update the state of the NAS into the idle state, and respond to thepaging content.

Here, the UE may further include a second response unit configured to,when the paging type is the access network paging, directly respond tothe paging message, and initiate a connection recovery, establishment orreestablishment process.

To be specific, the second response unit may include a fifth processingunit located at the RRC layer and configured to respond to the pagingmessage at the RRC layer, and initiate the connection recovery,establishment or reestablishment process.

In a possible embodiment of the present disclosure, indicationinformation of the paging type may be carried in the paging message. Atthis time, the determination unit 52 is further configured to determinethe paging type corresponding to the paging message in accordance withthe indication information.

In another possible embodiment of the present disclosure, apredetermined parameter expressed in a predetermined expression mode maybe carried in the paging message, and different expression modes of thepredetermined parameter may correspond to different paging types. Atthis time, the determination unit 52 is further configured to determinethe paging type corresponding to the expression mode of thepredetermined parameter in the paging message, thereby to acquire thepaging type corresponding to the paging message.

In yet another possible embodiment of the present disclosure, a firstpredetermined parameter may be carried or not carried in the pagingmessage, and whether the first predetermined parameter is carried in thepaging message may be determined in accordance with the paging type. Atthis time, the determination unit 52 is further configured to determinethe paging type corresponding to the paging message in accordance withwhether the first predetermined parameter is carried in the pagingmessage.

As shown in FIG. 6, the present disclosure further provides in someembodiments a UE which includes a first transceiver 601, a firstprocessor 604 and a first memory 605. The first transceiver 601 isconfigured to receive and transmit data under the control of the firstprocessor 604. To be specific, the first transceiver 601 may receive apaging message for determining a paging type from the base station, andthe paging type may include an access network paging initiated by anaccess network or a core network paging initiated by a core network. Thefirst processor 604 is configured to read a program stored in the firstmemory 605, so as to: determine the paging type corresponding to thepaging message in accordance with the paging message received throughthe first transceiver 601; and when the paging type corresponding to thepaging message is the core network paging, update states of an NAS andan RRC layer for the UE each into an idle state, and respond to thepaging message.

In FIG. 6, bus architecture (represented by a first bus 600) may includea number of buses and bridges connected to each other, the first bus 600connects various circuits including one or more processors representedby the processor 604 and one or more memories represented by the firstmemory 605. In addition, as is known in the art, the first bus 600 mayalso be used to connect various other circuits, such as a circuit for aperipheral device, a circuit for a voltage stabilizer and a powermanagement circuit, which are not particularly defined herein. A firstbus interface 603 may be provided between the first bus 600 and thefirst transceiver 601, and the first transceiver 601 may consist of oneelement, or more than one element, e.g., transmitters and receivers, soas to provide a unit for communication with various other devices over atransmission medium. Data processed by the first processor 604 may betransmitted on a wireless medium via the first transceiver 601 and afirst antenna 602. Further, the first antenna 602 may further receivedata and transmit the data to the first processor 604 via the firsttransceiver 601.

The first processor 604 may take charge of managing the first bus 600 aswell as general processings, and may further provide various functionssuch as timing, peripheral interfacing, voltage adjustment, power sourcemanagement and other control functions. The first memory 605 may storetherein data for the operation of the first processor 604. To bespecific, the first processor 604 may be a Central Processing Unit(CPU), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), aField-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) or a Complex Programmable LogicDevice (CPLD).

In a possible embodiment of the present disclosure, the first processor604 is further configured to, upon determining that the paging typecorresponding to the paging message is the core network paging, controlthe RRC layer for the UE to update the state of the RRC layer into theidle state, notify the NAS to release a connection for the UE, controlthe NAS for the UE to update the state of the NAS into the idle state,control the RRC layer for the UE to deliver paging content in the pagingmessage to the NAS, and control the NAS to receive the paging contentand respond to the paging content.

In a possible embodiment of the present disclosure, the first processor604 is further configured to, upon determining that the paging typecorresponding to the paging message is the core network paging, controlthe RRC layer for the UE to deliver the paging content in the pagingmessage to the NAS, control the RRC layer to update the state of the RRClayer into the idle state, and control the NAS for the UE to update thestate of the NAS into the idle state and respond to the paging contentafter the NAS has received the paging content.

The first processor 604 is further configured to, upon determining thepaging type corresponding to the paging message is the access networkpaging, directly respond to the paging message, and initiate aconnection recovery, establishment or reestablishment process. To bespecific, the first processor 604 may directly respond to the pagingmessage at the RRC layer, and initiate the connection recovery,establishment or reestablishment process.

In a possible embodiment of the present disclosure, indicationinformation of the paging type may be carried in the paging message. Thefirst processor 604 is further configured to determine the paging typecorresponding to the paging message in accordance with the indicationinformation. In another possible embodiment of the present disclosure, apredetermined parameter expressed in a predetermined expression mode maybe carried in the paging message, and different expression modes of thepredetermined parameter may correspond to different paging types. Thefirst processor 604 is further configured to determine the paging typecorresponding to the expression mode of the predetermined parameter inthe paging message, so as to acquire the paging type corresponding tothe paging message. In yet another possible embodiment of the presentdisclosure, a first predetermined parameter may be carried or notcarried in the paging message, and whether the first predeterminedparameter is carried in the paging message may be determined inaccordance with the paging type. The first processor 604 may determinethe paging type corresponding to the paging message in accordance withwhether the first predetermined parameter is carried in the pagingmessage.

As shown in FIG. 7, the present disclosure further provides in someembodiments a base station, which includes: a determination unit 71configured to determine a paging type of a paging for a UE when it isnecessary for the base station to initiate the paging for the UE,wherein the paging type includes an access network paging initiated byan access network or a core network paging initiated by a core network;and a transmission unit 72 configured to transmit a paging message fordetermining the paging type to the UE.

Herein, indication information of the paging type may be carried in thepaging message; or a predetermined parameter expressed in apredetermined expression mode may be carried in the paging message, anddifferent expression modes of the predetermined parameter may correspondto different paging types; or a first predetermined parameter may becarried or not carried in the paging message, and whether the firstpredetermined parameter is carried in the paging message may bedetermined in accordance with the paging type.

As shown in FIG. 8, the present disclosure further provides in someembodiments a base station, which includes a second transceiver 801, asecond processor 804 and a second memory 805. The second transceiver 801is configured to receive and transmit data under the control of thesecond processor 804. To be specific, the second transceiver 801 maytransmit a paging message for determining the paging type to a UE. Thesecond processor 804 is configured to read a program stored in thesecond memory 805, so as to: determine the paging type when it isnecessary to initiate a paging for the UE, the paging type including anaccess network paging initiated by an access network or a core networkpaging initiated by a core network; and control the second transceiver801 to transmit the paging message for determining the paging type tothe UE.

In FIG. 8, bus architecture (represented by a second bus 800) mayinclude a number of buses and bridges connected to each other, thesecond bus 800 connects various circuits including one or moreprocessors represented by the processor 804 and one or more memoriesrepresented by the second memory 805. In addition, as is known in theart, the second bus 800 may also be used to connect various othercircuits, such as a circuit for a peripheral device, a circuit for avoltage stabilizer and a power management circuit, which are notparticularly defined herein. A second bus interface 803 may be providedbetween the second bus 800 and the second transceiver 801, and thesecond transceiver 801 may consist of one element, or more than oneelement, e.g., transmitters and receivers, so as to provide a unit forcommunication with various other devices over a transmission medium.Data processed by the second processor 804 may be transmitted on awireless medium via the second transceiver 801 and a second antenna 802.Further, the second antenna 802 may further receive data and transmitthe data to the second processor 804 via the second transceiver 801.

The second processor 804 may take charge of managing the second bus 800as well as general processings, and may further provide variousfunctions such as timing, peripheral interfacing, voltage adjustment,power source management and other control functions. The second memory805 may store therein data for the operation of the second processor804. To be specific, the second processor 804 may be a CPU, an ASIC, aFPGA or a CPLD.

According to the paging method, the base station and the UE in theembodiments of the present disclosure, during the paging process for theUE in the inactive state, it is able to prevent the occurrence of apaging failure for the UE when the state of the UE is understood by thenetwork and the UE differently, thereby to enable the UE to accuratelyreceive the paging message and improve a success rate of the pagingprocess.

The present disclosure has been described with reference to the flowcharts and/or block diagrams of the method, device (system) and computerprogram product according to the embodiments of the present disclosure.It should be understood that computer program instructions may be usedto implement each of the work flows and/or blocks in the flow chartsand/or the block diagrams, and the combination of the work flows and/orblocks in the flow charts and/or the block diagrams. These computerprogram instructions may be provided to a processor of a commoncomputer, a dedicate computer, an embedded processor or anotherprogrammable data processing device to create a machine, so thatinstructions executable by the processor of the computer or the otherprogrammable data processing device may create a device to achieve thefunctions assigned in one or more work flows in the flow chart and/orone or more blocks in the block diagram.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computerreadable storage that may guide the computer or the other programmabledata process device to function in a certain way, so that theinstructions stored in the computer readable storage may create aproduct including an instruction device which achieves the functionsassigned in one or more flows in the flow chart and/or one or moreblocks in the block diagram.

These computer program instructions may also be loaded in the computeror the other programmable data process device, so that a series ofoperation steps are executed on the computer or the other programmabledevice to create processes achieved by the computer. Therefore, theinstructions executed in the computer or the other programmable deviceprovide the steps for achieving the function assigned in one or moreflows in the flow chart and/or one or more blocks in the block diagram.

The above are merely preferred embodiments of the present disclosure. Aperson skilled in the art may make further modifications andimprovements without departing from the principle of the presentdisclosure, and these modifications and improvements shall also fallwithin the scope of the present disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A paging method, comprising: receiving, by a UserEquipment (UE) in an inactive state, a paging message, the pagingmessage being transmitted from a base station, and the paging typecorresponding to the paging message comprising an access network paginginitiated by an access network or a core network paging initiated by acore network; if the paging type corresponding to the paging message isa core network paging, updating, by the UE, each of states of aNon-Access Stratum (NAS) and a Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer forthe UE into an idle state, and responding to, by the UE, the pagingmessage.
 2. The paging method according to claim 1, wherein the updatingby the UE each of the states of the NAS and the RRC layer for the UEinto the idle state and responding to by the UE the paging messagecomprises: enabling the RRC layer for the UE to update a state of theRRC layer into the idle state and notify the NAS to release a connectionfor the UE, and enabling the NAS for the UE to update the state of theNAS into the idle state; and enabling the RRC layer for the UE todeliver paging content in the paging message to the NAS, and enablingthe NAS to receive the paging content and respond to the paging content.3. The paging method according to claim 1, wherein the updating by theUE each of the states of the NAS and the RRC layer for the UE into theidle state and responding to by the UE the paging message comprises:enabling the RRC layer for the UE to deliver paging content in thepaging message to the NAS, and update the state of the RRC layer intothe idle state; and enabling the NAS for the UE, upon the receipt of thepaging content, to update the state of the NAS into the idle state andrespond to the paging content.
 4. The paging method according to claim1, further comprising: if the paging type corresponding to the pagingmessage is the access network paging, responding, by the UE, directly tothe paging message, and initiating, by the UE, a connection recoveryprocess, a connection establishment process or a connectionreestablishment process.
 5. The paging method according to claim 1,wherein indication information of the paging type is carried in thepaging message; and the paging type corresponding to the paging messageis determined by the UE in accordance with the indication information.6. The paging method according to claim 1, wherein a predeterminedparameter expressed in a predetermined expression mode is carried in thepaging message, and different expression modes of the predeterminedparameter correspond to different paging types; and the paging typecorresponding to the expression mode of the predetermined parameter inthe paging message is determined by the UE, to acquire the paging typecorresponding to the paging message.
 7. The paging method according toclaim 1, wherein a first predetermined parameter is carried or notcarried in the paging message, and it is determined whether the firstpredetermined parameter is carried in the paging message in accordancewith the paging type; and the paging type corresponding to the pagingmessage is determined by the UE in accordance with whether the firstpredetermined parameter is carried in the paging message.
 8. A pagingmethod, comprising: determining, by a base station, a paging type of apaging for a UE upon the base station initiates the paging for the UE,the paging type comprising an access network paging initiated by anaccess network or a core network paging initiated by a core network; andtransmitting, by the base station, a paging message for determining thepaging type to the UE.
 9. The paging method according to claim 8,wherein indication information of the paging type is carried in thepaging message; or a predetermined parameter expressed in apredetermined expression mode is carried in the paging message, anddifferent expression modes of the predetermined parameter correspond todifferent paging types; or a first predetermined parameter is carried ornot carried in the paging message, wherein it is determined whether thefirst predetermined parameter is carried in the paging message inaccordance with the paging type.
 10. A UE, comprising a processor, atransceiver and a memory, wherein the processor is configured to read aprogram stored in the memory to: receive a paging message fordetermining a paging type if the UE is in an inactive state, wherein thepaging message is transmitted from a base station, and the paging typecorresponding to the paging message comprises an access network paginginitiated by an access network or a core network paging initiated by acore network; if the paging type corresponding to the paging message isa core network paging, update each of states of an NAS and an RRC layerfor the UE into an idle state, and respond to the paging message,wherein the transceiver is configured to receive and transmit data, andthe memory is configured to store therein data for the operation of theprocessor.
 11. A base station for implementing the method according toclaim 8, comprising a processor, a transceiver and a memory, wherein theprocessor is configured to read a program stored in the memory to:determine a paging type of a paging for a UE upon the base stationinitiates the paging for the UE, wherein the paging type comprises anaccess network paging initiated by an access network or a core networkpaging initiated by a core network; and transmit a paging message fordetermining the paging type to the UE, wherein the transceiver isconfigured to receive and transmit data, and the memory is configured tostore therein data for the operation of the processor.
 12. The UEaccording to claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured toread the program stored in the memory to: enable the RRC layer for theUE to update a state of the RRC layer into the idle state and notify theNAS to release a connection for the UE, and enable the NAS for the UE toupdate the state of the NAS into the idle state; and enable the RRClayer for the UE to deliver paging content in the paging message to theNAS, and enable the NAS to receive the paging content and respond to thepaging content.
 13. The UE according to claim 10, wherein the processoris further configured to read the program stored in the memory to:enable the RRC layer for the UE to deliver paging content in the pagingmessage to the NAS, and update the state of the RRC layer into the idlestate; and enable the NAS for the UE, upon the receipt of the pagingcontent, to update the state of the NAS into the idle state and respondto the paging content.
 14. The UE according to claim 10, wherein theprocessor is further configured to read the program stored in the memoryto: if the paging type corresponding to the paging message is the accessnetwork paging, respond directly to the paging message, and initiate aconnection recovery process, a connection establishment process or aconnection reestablishment process.
 15. The UE according to claim 10,wherein indication information of the paging type is carried in thepaging message; and the processor is further configured to read theprogram stored in the memory to: determine the paging type correspondingto the paging message in accordance with the indication information. 16.The UE according to claim 10, wherein a predetermined parameterexpressed in a predetermined expression mode is carried in the pagingmessage, and different expression modes of the predetermined parametercorrespond to different paging types; and the processor is furtherconfigured to read the program stored in the memory to: determine thepaging type corresponding to the expression mode of the predeterminedparameter in the paging message, to acquire the paging typecorresponding to the paging message.
 17. The UE according to claim 10,wherein a first predetermined parameter is carried or not carried in thepaging message, and it is determined whether the first predeterminedparameter is carried in the paging message in accordance with the pagingtype; and the processor is further configured to read the program storedin the memory to: determine the paging type corresponding to the pagingmessage in accordance with whether the first predetermined parameter iscarried in the paging message.
 18. The base station according to claim11, wherein indication information of the paging type is carried in thepaging message; or a predetermined parameter expressed in apredetermined expression mode is carried in the paging message, anddifferent expression modes of the predetermined parameter correspond todifferent paging types; or a first predetermined parameter is carried ornot carried in the paging message, wherein it is determined whether thefirst predetermined parameter is carried in the paging message inaccordance with the paging type.